JeremiahWeed

Nah. Didn’t cross my mind until the timeline came up in this thread. I always was an avid contributor to the douffer book. I guess it was a flashback to that. 😬

????? The only way that guy was making it out was a safe landing and ground egress or a sudden restart of the ejection sequence. It’s also possible the auto sequence mode might have worked as advertised and punched him normally. Get out of the seat and now he’s down to only one way to survive. I’d stay in the seat, ready to take a ride in it until the jet was down. If at some point the seat fires, it’s a 0/0 seat he was fully planning to use just minutes prior anyway. If the situation goes south rapidly at some later point during the approach, at least i’d have a glimmer of hope I’d go along with everyone else using the auto sequence.

I found an obscure article that just came out that might explain.........😁 Fallon, NV (AP) An American hero is back. Following a desperate call by the US Air Force and Navy for retired fighter pilots to consider returning to the cockpit, Pete Mitchell, better known as “Maverick” is returning to the skies. Turning 60 later this year, he is one of the oldest fighter pilots to answer the call. When asked if he’s concerned about being able to keep up with his younger counterparts, he quickly dispelled any doubts. “I’ve been working as an instructor at Air Combat USA”, Maverick explained. “I’m one of the most requested instructors and I always tell the customers that they can be my wingman any time…… They really like that.” Mitchell also touched on his fitness routine which involves, “A LOT of volleyball…..Just a whole bunch of volleyball.” Beyond his time in the spotlight 33-years ago, Maverick has had his share of ups and downs. There is much about his time in the Navy that has been relatively unknown to the general public. He enjoyed a storied 30-year career that began with fits and starts trying to escape the shadow of his controversial father and some misdeeds of his own. His story took a turn for the better following multiple MiG kills, a spin as a Top Gun instructor and tying the knot with his new sweetheart “Charley”. Success was his new back-seater and for the next 25 years, he lived a charmed life. However, as the twilight of his career approached, things began to unravel. Expecting to be promoted to Rear Admiral, Maverick ran into trouble when a faded polaroid surfaced and began to make its way around social media. The picture clearly showed him extending his middle finger to another country’s fighter pilot at very close range. Once it was learned that this foreign pilot was, in fact, that services first woman fighter pilot, it was just a matter of time before he was facing the first of several sexual harassment law suits. Other women fighter pilots from the United States as well as several European allies came forward with similar “me too” charges of airborne insults. “It…was just awful. I felt so marginalized and ridiculed. That kind of behavior just doesn’t belong in a fighter. We’re up there training to kill people and he just took it to an ugly place. It’s hard to see the HUD, let alone gun someone when you’re having to constantly raise your visor to blot away tears.” said a French Mirage-2000 pilot on condition of anonymity. Feeling pressure from all directions, the Navy began to re-evaluate Mitchell’s pending promotion. The final death blow came from retired Admiral, now California Senator Phillip Benjamin. Benjamin was able to build support in the Senate to disapprove the promotion. It’s unclear what his motivation was, but it apparently involved his daughter Penny and had something to do with Mitchell’s flying as the Senator was overheard saying to himself, “How’s that high-speed pass looking now, Mav?” Forced to retire at the rank of O-6 in 2010, Maverick put the Navy behind him and began to look for new career opportunities. Three unsuccessful major airline interviews were all marred by persistent inquiries by HR about the polaroid and rumors of his use of the women’s bathroom at the Miramar O-club. His attempts to deflect the questions usually involved agreeing to answer on condition of murdering the interviewer afterwards. Needless to say, Mitchell’s transition to airline flying never really left the ground. To make matters worse, it was at this time that it became readily apparent what had really been behind Charley’s overly enthusiastic pursuit of threesomes with Maverick. Unable to remain in denial any longer, their threesomes became twosomes and Pete wasn’t invited. While difficult, this period carried a silver lining simply because even he had come to admit that Charley had pretty much let herself go to the dogs. Childless, thanks to Maverick spending 4000 hours sitting 5 feet behind a 3-Kilowatt radiation source, the marriage dissolved quickly. The last 8 years haven’t passed without some difficulties for Mitchell. There have been several failed business ventures including a Karaoke Bar. Patrons typically left frustrated because there was only one song on the machine and Mitchell usually insisted on singing it with them. He does admit he took a while to adjust to civilian flying, even the mock dogfighting he now teaches at Air Combat USA. “It was tough at first”, Maverick explained. “It got better once I got them to install the locker room for the post-flight showers. A lot of good learning happens in there. I think everyone comes out a better combat pilot than when they put that towel on and walked in”. But now Maverick is ready to put that part of his life behind him and begin the re-launch of phase two of his Naval aviation career. The world is watching and MiG pilots are running scared. Look out.

Whether it's airlines or something else, much is done on line now. But, it you have a chance/need to go old school with a resume, "writing style" is probably going to make it a fail. An effective resume is 1 page/1 side - just the facts. If you start trying to go for style points, it's going to grow to multiple pages and whoever you give it to is going to stop reading. If you're looking for an example of an airline focused resume, I can send a generic one if you want to message me an email address. Not sure I have the technical ability to just post it. Non-airline, I'm probably not going to be much help other than what I've already offered.

I think it's kind of down to semantics and I'm no expert either. But, looking at your original comment, my point was that being charged simply means the evidence supports that. It still doesn't mean the person's guilty or has yet reached the point where there is "no excuse" for them. Until there's a verdict they are innocent until proven otherwise - "charged" shouldn't matter.

So....... being charged is enough? No slack if they end up acquitted?😉 Maybe you meant convicted. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwrvDBmoaXo Also, what is an "alleged crime"? A crime that hasn't actually been proven to be a crime?

Mmmmmmaaaayyybe........ Is she hot? 😀

use enough? - I'll grant you that. If Mr. Left hand wasn't locked in the forward-most position, that may be a contributing factor. have enough? From what I've been told, if just one of those dino-burning monsters was full up, that lad had as many thrusties available as I used to start out every takeoff roll with in the might-mighty. Whether he opted to use them in a time appropriate manner may be the question 'o the day. Time will tell.

Ohhhhh... he meant gear door drag as in actually dragging on the runway. That could cause problems. As far as losing an engine at brake release?......... and not realizing it?......... lots to say but I'll refrain..... other than a general observation. You've got a kick-ass set of engines if you can't even tell you've popped one between pushing up the power and rotating. Just sayin'

Gear door drag on an F-22? Seems hard to believe 60-70K worth of thrust wouldn't be able to solve that minor aerodynamic challenge.

Annnnnnnd that right there, ladies and gentlemen says it all in a nut-shell!!! Single seat A/A - sport of kings.

Send the WSO to go call the crew van on his 02 mask tester in life support and step without him?

Curious. Do the single seat aircraft do the same mission as the two seaters (and what are those missions)? Do I understand correctly that the jets are assigned to the same squadron? Do pilots fly a single seater one day and a two seater (with WSO, RIO, whatever) the next day?

Yes. Although the Cathay flight is my doing - not the company's. They had me direct to CAN on Air France in business class for $6400. I decided to deviate from their plan, found the first class ticket on Cathay for $5500. Saved me some $ for other travel expenses, got a better ride, some AA frequent flyer miles and all it costs me is a 2 hour connection in Hong Kong. That should be enough time to stop by their lounge for a free foot massage and a few fingers of 18 year old single malt (ah.. who am I kidding, it'll probably be at least a whole hand).

?? I fly AA all the time and for a US airline, I can say that I'm consistently satisfied with the product and on a pretty regular basis, even impressed. The perks for elite customers are outstanding. Their lounges have been dramatically improved, I get upgraded on 99% of the coach tickets I buy and rarely have the stereotypical old, inattentive FAs. The service is usually outstanding, food and entertainment system is excellent and I'd give the drink menu a solid A-. I also haven't had a single baggage issue in over 10 years and rarely wait longer than 10 minutes for it once I'm in baggage claim. Next trip I have a first class ticket on Cathay Pacific from Paris to China. Now, if you're going to use that as a comparison, AA would come in second place. But not by a overwhelming margin. So, for what it's worth, I still say they're pretty damn good all things considered. Definitely the best US airline in my experience with Delta running second. UAL isn't even close. On occasion I end up on them and it's truly amazing how bad they are across the board in comparison.

I think you kind of have that flip-flopped. I think it's the folks with the "slower metal tube" that have found a way to make that MORE appealing. QOL and lots of $$$ to use in that "L" are a strong incentive no matter how much fun the explosive-laden jet is. Last I checked, the wife and kids don't get to go to the range with you. When you can gross over a million dollars every 4-5 years, that tube with 200 folks in it (or a bunch of overnight packages) looks pretty dayum good. Just sayin'.

I guess I'm missing something here. Does "Holloman" means something else other than an AD base in southern NM? What about it was a bad idea from the start?

Why is this? It's been a while for me, but I always thought it was a pretty good location in terms of ramp space, airspace, terrain, ranges, etc. What happened?

FedEx. However, “left” implies it was voluntary. Initially leaving was their idea - you know.....that whole furlough thing. My role in the outcome began when they recalled me and involved flipping them the bird from my MD-11 right seat making twice what i’d make if I had gone back. One of the best decisions of my life - but, made under different circumstances than today.

I'm going to guess and say you're at UAL? (unless there's another airline out there restricting altitude knobs to the PM only). That was their thing when I was there. The PF never set the altitude on the MCP even with the autopilot engaged. My next and then current airline were the exact opposite. The entire MCP including altitude knob was the PF's with autopilot on - the PM's with it off. FWIW, during my time at UAL the attitude about matching the heading knob was - do it. However, anyone who saw it could just reach up and do it at cruise regardless of who was flying. That wasn't written anywhere, it was just the way it was done.

Just FYI: Airlines give zero f#cks about this. Same training for all no matter how "airline ready" someone might think they are.

I think you'd be disappointed. I don't care that much about it. I've just seen it screwed up enough and flown with certain folks who absolutely lack any level of mental flexibility to work outside the lines occasionally. Huggy asked and I tried to provide a semblance of a valid answer. Buddy Spike added another one.

I'll take a shot at this. Before I do, I will caveat everything by saying I think Boeing's approach to heading bug logic is extremely flawed and I share your frustration with this tedious routine we follow as we fly. My frustration lies in the poor design of the system. However, I do feel that the technique of matching the bug is a necessary evil for a few reasons. I've flown four Boeings (737, 757, 767 and currently fly the 777). I've also flown the A320 and the MD-11. Without getting unnecessarily aircraft specific, I'll just say that there are far better ways to skin this cat and the heading select logic found in other aircraft is vastly superior in my opinion. As you mentioned, the logic includes removal of the bug when not in use. Some systems also can "remember" which direction the heading knob was turned prior to actually engaging the heading mode. In addition, some systems put the heading bug in a dormant state once the aircraft has captured the selected heading. By this I mean it's not always "hot" like on a Boeing and turning the knob to a new heading will not create an immediate turn. The button must be actuated again to begin the turn. I offer this info only to illustrate that someone's background in other aircraft can set up the potential for errors when "muscle memory" and former habits potentially surface at the wrong time during high workload situations. So having everyone start on the same page and keep them on that page when things get busy has huge value in my opinion. Also, FWIW, matching the bug to current heading is procedure at FedEx and was at United when I worked there - not sure about now. You may not be able to find that specifically addressed in your books but I would argue that's it pretty much procedural with most Boeing operators whether they put it in print or not. So, one of the big reasons we do this is standardization. We successfully put two (or more) pilots who've potentially never flown together and only met an hour or two prior together on flights routinely. A major reason this happens uneventfully every day is standardization. You didn't care about the U2 heading bug at times and at others you chose to do something with it you found helpful. In a single seat aircraft you have that luxury since your techniques and opinions are the only ones that matter. At "brand-X" you don't have the same leeway without creating the potential for confusion. I'm not trying to make matching the bug to your heading a bigger deal than it really is, but not doing it can lead to other issues - some big, some small. Maybe it's in the sim or out on the line, but depending on who you're crewed with, what seems like a little thing can turn into something big in rapid fashion. For example: While we all know assumptions are bad and making mode changes without verifying the variables is bad technique, I'm sure you've seen someone just reach up and push the heading knob when ATC clears you to "maintain present heading". Their assumption is the bug is matched - which at many airlines is a valid assumption since it's procedural (not excusing not checking first - but we are dealing with fallible humans). So, you get rushed and give the jet to the other guy in the descent so you can load and brief the approach. Today, you left the bug "over your shoulder" and it's not even visible on the ND. So, he attempts to comply with ATC's instructions and assumes the bug was matched. When the unexpected turn starts, he realizes it isn't and now has to recover. Recovery techniques are going to vary from rapidly dialing in your old current heading (if he remembers), using heading hold, going back to LNAV momentarily, etc. That doesn't even account for the startle factor which will vary based on proficiency level, fatigue, distraction, etc. and may delay the recovery attempt while he tries to figure out what happened. The bottom line is, a matched bug or even something close is going to be more forgiving of bad technique and avoid potentially bigger issues. On a side note - I highly recommend using "Heading Hold" when complying with "maintain present heading" for this very reason (technique only). Since your technique means the heading bug could be anywhere at any time prior to you using heading select, by definition, you have to select something you want with the MCP knob before you engage Heading Select ("center the bug before you mash down" as you put it). On the other hand, those who match the bug can immediately engage Heading Select and then turn the knob to the desired heading. That distinction is important. Since your technique involves an extra step, EVERY TIME you use Heading Select, that's something the pilot monitoring has to be looking for as well. Since it's non-standard, that's going incumbent on you to make sure he's aware that needs to be in his cross-check. For example, ATC gives you a 220 degree heading change "the long way around" to the right. Any heading selected on the left of your compass rose when the button is pushed is going to command a turn to the left. So, are you going to dial in your current heading, THEN engage Heading Select and then command the turn to the right? Every time?... no matter what? Would it ever be possible (habit, task saturated, fatigue, etc) you might first select the desired heading and then engage heading select commanding a left turn you would then need to reverse? I'd guess it's unlikely these issues are going become life or death matters. If they snowball thanks to a really bad day or just Murphy's law, they could still turn ugly with the FAA. Is it really worth any issues arising because you want to make a point? Most likely your airline pays you a pretty good bit of money to fly their jets and they want them flown their way. Why not make it easy on yourself and your crew members and play along?

I'm reading your post with a giant question mark over my head. What extra special insight have have you suddenly been granted while waiting in the OTS pipeline (whatever that is) that's allowed you to witness all this incompetence on the part of the AD USAF? You've spent 4 years in your current position and felt a strong enough call to seek out the OTS/UPT opportunity while somehow remaining unaware of the faults of the USAF? Now that you've been selected, what's changed? Do OTS candidates get on some kind of "Here's all the dumb shit we're doing in the USAF" newsletter mailing list or are you being brought into top secret Lockheed meetings you previously had been left out of? Seriously, what exactly are the "one disaster after another" you have been able to personally witness that's created this level of doubt? I'm not saying there's not plenty of issues with the AD USAF. Generally speaking, those issues don't rise to the level of pain required to make someone consider bailing on the AD until they're a mid-level O-3 approaching the end of their UPT service commitment. You usually don't see that low a pain tolerance in a brand new butter bar never mind a civilian who hasn't even started day-one or raised his hand and taken the oath. Go fly USAF airplanes - fighters if you can. The ANG is a great option if you can swing it without porking away the bird you already have in your hand. But, either way, spend your younger years doing one of the best jobs this country has to offer. Yes, there's a price to pay to do it, sometimes a really big price. I seriously doubt you'll find too many guys here who feel their choice was a mistake.

For the same reason I flew with a S&W .38 revolver from Jan to Mar of 1991.